Plywood drone from Belarus crashes in Lithuania, causing alarm
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Prime Minister Gintautas Paluckas was briefly taken to a bomb shelter in response to the drone entering Lithuanian airspace.
PHOTOS: REUTERS, X
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- An unmanned, homemade aircraft entered Lithuania from Belarus, prompting a response and investigation by authorities.
- Key officials were moved to shelters, and NATO jets were dispatched but recalled after the object crashed near the border.
- The aircraft, made of plywood and foam, posed no immediate danger, but its purpose remains unknown amid investigations.
AI generated
VILNIUS – An unmanned aircraft built from plywood and foam flew into Nato member Lithuania from Belarus and crashed, causing alarm before the authorities determined it was not dangerous, Lithuanian officials said on July 10.
Prime Minister Gintautas Paluckas and Speaker of the Parliament Saulius Skvernelis were briefly taken to bomb shelters in response to the object entering Lithuanian airspace, according to their spokespeople.
Nato Baltic Air Policing jets were dispatched to the area but were recalled after the object fell to the ground about 1km from the border, armed forces spokesperson Gintautas Ciunis told a press conference.
“The object does not pose any danger now, but we don’t yet know what was its purpose,” he said. Investigations were continuing to determine what it was for and where it came from.
Lithuania’s Defence Ministry said in a statement that the object appeared to be “homemade”.
Images and a video taken by the army showed a winged device resembling a small airplane lying on grass. Its body was cut open in two places, revealing a wooden interior compartment with wiring inside.
An e-mailed border guard statement said a preliminary assessment was that it was made of plywood and foam, and that there were no indications it was carrying anything.
In September 2024, a Russian military drone carrying explosives likely to have been intended for use in Ukraine crashed in Latvia some 90km from the border with Belarus. REUTERS
